Before Akon Know Liberia - Good Good

We on the motorbike going now Zegle-zegle-teh ask me say, "you hear the thing what Alfred Paye say about your ma; what-thing you coming do?"

Myself was thinking about the thing hard. Alfred Paye brought the news that my mother was in very bad serious health condition. She sent the message for me to find money and come quick because somebody put witch on her. They say one snake came to her in her dream and in the morning she woke up and her whole foot was swollen. She thinking say one woman from the next town witched her for jealousy business. Yeah. Nimba County get too much medicine and witch.

The way I now talk plenty about the Nimba County people own of something let me talk about some of the different-different other tribe them before the people come say I want spoil their name. We get plenty tribe in Liberia; some people say about 15 some people say it reaching 30. The way you count depend on how you distinguish one tribe from another, but even normal days, the thing was chakla-chakla. The most way people like to find differences between the people that in the dialects, but even self that one not correct. Just take the Krahn people for instance – you passing in Grand Gedeh, the way the place big so, and the people not too plenty, you want speak-say hello to the people, each area you go the people answer you different way. Even self that the same Krahn people everywhere, and it is just like that throughout Grand Gedeh what in Liberia going all the way inside Cote d'Ivoire. And when you reach the Cote d'Ivoire side that the same Krahn people again but they can answering your greetings in different-different ways.

The Krahn people looking just like the Gio people and they living right next to each other what make it that in olden times they can marry among themselves and fuss among themselves too much. Five minutes they friendly, five minutes they want fight. The Mano people what living among the Gio on the other side can marry the Krahn and Gio plenty too, but they say those other two tribes are too uncivilized, that's why they like fighting business for. But let me take time with the Krahn people yah! One thing about them, they are too vengeful and hard to forget a grudge. Gio people own, they can forget. But before they forget, they like to pay their debt.

Don't underestimate Grand Gedeh people! Since before the Congo people come, even before the Mandingos self, those people able smelt iron — especially in the Putu range. In those olden times, they along with Kpelle people, they the ones making iron tools to trade with all the other tribes. The Nimba County people used to get more cattle and able to fix fine-fine brass jewelry what they used to barter with the Grand Gedeh people for their iron tools.

The main palaver between the Nimba County people and the Grand Gedeh people which we can just say are Krahn, all started with the palaver between Samuel K. Doe and Thomas Quiwonkpa. Who expected that kind of thing to escalate into wicked genocide on both sides? Then the people spoiled it again by spreading it all over Liberia. But let me leave that one before the people say I coming talk politics.

In fact, among all the plenty tribes in Liberia, the only good-good people for true that's the Kpelle. If God bless you, you love a Kpelle woman and marry her, your whole life coming be happy. Except if that Monrovia girl, for Monrovia girls them all spoiled — even Kpelle and all. The Kpelle people are very plenty, but they are so submissive and quiet you can't hardly know. Although they plentiful, Kpelle people meetings can't be active like Nimba County meetings. They don't like too much politics and they don't get too much problems. You go their meetings you can't hardly see somebody, and Kpelle people don't get plenty jealousy. They are easy. If you ever do something bad to somebody, just pray that Kpelle man. Small talking and he will forgive you.

But you make mistake you fall in love with a Kru woman! They say, simple mistake – you out! And the problem again, Kru woman get passion. Even their men them can get vex, but their women worse. No woman in Liberia can love to you like Kru woman. You fall in love with Kru woman, it's just like to say you jump inside the cooking pot; you coming to eat good, but you coming cook yourself the same time. Even self they living on the big-water, Kru people that so so fire. For relationship business, no water there, only fire. The jealousy and passion Kru women get you will never be able to find peace in your house – whole day fighting and making love business. You make small mistake your eyeballs look to the side; just forget about it.

Bassa people own, they also plenty and they are too civilized. For long they have been on the coast near the Congo people. That's why you will find so so of them get houseboy job, driver job, plumber job and different-different job what people can get in town. Bassa people that good people and they like fun; they can able to play fine-fine music — but they not like plenty farming business and they lazy for physical work. If you look at their interior mud houses self, they are small compared to the other tribes. You can't hardly stand inside. The other people laughing at them say it just for sitting down to get out of the rain or for making love. And those people can love o. You get lover, don't make mistake you leave them among the Bassa people. And when your lover that Bassa, don't be jealous, just forget about playing jealousy because you not able to mind them. When Bassa people not grow plenty food to eat, they just pick small-small plums, oranges, coconuts, sugarcanes and things, anything that in season, and put it on the side of the road and go lay down — when car stop, they running there to sell it. So so laziness.

The Vai people own, they are too intelligent. Of all the people in Africa, of the hundreds and hundreds of tribes them, the Vai are one of only six that developed their own written language that is not based on the direct influence of foreign people. They fix that one hundreds of years ago just before the Congo people reach on this side. It not even looking like Arabic or English, they get their own something with written symbol for each of their own of sound. Only thing, the way people not get respect for good interior something in Liberia, they can't hardly use it this time. Yeah! And the Vai people so clever they protect their own of land, and not sell all like the Bassa people or let different people come overthrow them like the Loma.

Let me come talk about the Loma. Those people own of story not finish yet. Those people what used to be friendly to the Mandingo people and used to be brave because they use to have plenty policeman and soldierman job under the Congo people in normal days, come see them now. But let that story stay, I want talk about what happened when I reach Waterside.

We reach Waterside, Zegle-zegle-teh say, "I want eat some of your money what you coming to get o."

I say, "Eh Zegle-zegle, I not get the money yet, and the way I looking jammed. Let me see what-thing I coming get from my other friend. Thank you yah for the ride my brother."

Zegle-zegle-teh say, "no problem my brother. Let God be with you, I going look for passengers."

I reach the store what my Lebanese friend get I spy him and say, "Hello mister Fa'ha! I come see you today o!" The man what name Farhan, what to say he tell me say it mean happy in his own of Lebanese dialect; but I not able to speak that one, it too hard. So I just call him mister Fa'ha.

He spy me he say, "Hello Kato. How're you doing today?"

I tell him say, "My friend, it not easy o! I come beg you for help. I looking for job."

Mister Fa'ha looking at me he laughing, he say, "My man, what kind of job I get for you? You don't know we're in Liberia? They get more than 75% unemployment – why you not trying to sell something? Everybody trying to sell something these days." He spent long to Waterside, his own of English clear, but it still get Lebanese sound inside it.

I answer, "I not even get money to buy something to sell. Then my mother what in the interior, I hear say they witched her. She sick and no way to even go. My farm what I get in the interior, I get plenty cassava and banana there. But no good road, so no way to bring the thing to market here in town. And before I can carry it, if I pick the banana or dig the cassava from in the ground, all will spoil in the sun. And then I get another problem again. I spy one girl, I love her, I find out say that's Tubman's granddaughter. How to get the girl? I don't know. Things just looking sorrowful."

My friend looking at me, he say, "Kato, I think you should forget about the Tubman girl. Those Americo-Liberian girls coming back from America where they get educated while we were here in the war, myself not able them. They already get money and education. What-thing you can do for them to make them love you? But I coming do something for you I can't do for nobody here in Liberia. My own-self woman I can't want do it for them. I will credit you 100 US dollars and mark it in my book. When you get chance, you pay me."

Oh! Come see me dancing happy around the man! I say, this other my Lebanese friend, he's good o! Soon I get the money, I rushing to go.